ARCHIVED - San Javier airport wins prestigious quality award

San Javier takes the award as the government of Murcia negotiates to close it down

These are interesting times for the two airports in the Region of Murcia. The new Region of Murcia International Airport in Corvera has been completed but remains unopened, although the regional government is now optimistic that there could be planes in the runway in early 2016, while the existing airport at San Javier seems certain to be closed down assuming that Corvera opens.

However, those who defend San Javier and maintain that it should continue to operate have been given further ammunition with which to argue their case by the Airports Council International, which has decided that Murcia-San Javier was the best airport in Europe in 2014 among all of those carrying under two million passengers.

The Airport Service Quality Awards given by the ACI are the industry’s most prestigious accolades, and reflect the customer satisfaction index gained during surveys among passengers. These quarterly surveys take into account 34 parameters including access, check-in friendliness, security, parking, airport facilities, food quality and general service.

In 2012 and 2013 the European small airport category winner was Keflavik in Iceland, which in 2014 graduated to take the overall European award ahead of the airports of Moscow Sheremetyevo, Porto, Malta and Zürich.

Unfortunately, the future for Murcia-San Javier airport does not look so bright, as the regional government negotiates to re-route air traffic away from the Mar Menor to the inland facility at Corvera, an airport which was completed nearly three years ago and has yet to process a commercial flight.

While business leaders and the regional government maintain that the new infrastructure is essential for the future development of the region and its tourist industry, workers at San Javier, taxi drivers and local businesses fight to keep San Javier airport open.

Passengers, meanwhile, if this accolade is anything to go by, seem to like it the way it is!